Independent Party of Oregon comes under fire from Democratic and Republican parties

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The Independent Party of Oregon, set to become the state's third major party, is coming under new attack from the state's Democratic and Republican parties.

Democratic and Republican Party officials on Thursday trumpeted a recent poll claiming that nearly half of Independent Party voters don't know they are registered in the party.

The Independent Party, formed in 2007, now has some 110,000 registrants, meeting the threshold to be declared a major party entitled to a taxpayer-funded primary next year.

Questions have long been raised about whether Independent Party voters realize they are registering in a political party or think they are independent of any political party. In Oregon, the latter are officially known as non-affiliated voters, and there are more than 530,000 registered that way in the state.

The March 25-29 poll of 400 Independent Party voters, paid for by the Democratic Party of Oregon, found that 52 percent knew they were registered in the Independent Party, while 22 percent thought they were unaffiliated with any party and the rest thought they were in another party.

The poll conducted by GBA Associates also says that just under half would stay with the Independent Party if given a chance to re-register.

"If we're going to have major parties, we need to make sure their members actually intended to join, and that they are active and engaged in democratic processes," said Oregon Democratic Chairman Frank Dixon in the press release.

Greg Leo, a state GOP spokesman, questioned whether the Independent Party could function as a major party.

Sal Peralta, secretary of the Independent Party, said the poll was only the latest attack on his party by the Democratic and Republican parties.

"I think they are threatened by us," said Peralta, adding that the growth of both Independent Party and non-affiliated registrants in Oregon show that voters are becoming increasingly disenchanted with the nation's two dominant political parties.

Peralta said he didn't accept the poll's findings, but added that even half of the Independent Party registration represents a sizable bloc of voters. Dan Meek, the Independent Party's co-chair, noted that some Democrats backed a failed legislative attempt to prevent the party from using the "Independent" label.

Meek said in a statement that his party has always encouraged people to switch their registration if they want to be a non-affiliated voter, and he charged that the Democrats and Republicans are "quite ready to attack and destroy any new party that seeks to compete with them."

The release of the 3-month-old poll could indicate the beginning of a new legislative attempt to change Oregon election law regarding the definition of a major party. At a Wednesday hearing of the House Rules Committee, Democratic and Republican officials raised questions about the structure of the Independent Party, and Leo said his party may seek legislation in the February session.